Wednesday, February 23, 2011

"Why" - Annie Lennox

It's the question I've been asked the most in the last 9 days . . . . .

w h y ?

Why would you run for 24 hours on a treadmill?

[after my first initial thought......why. freaking. not?]

My true reply is:

I
do
because
I
can.

I'm doing it because [I KNOW] I can - and since I can, I am going to do this to raise money for Sojourner Center

From the moment I first visited it was a . . .

Life. changing. experience.

That's the response I gave yesterday when my intentions for this run were challenged.  I do most of my volunteer work with them behind the scenes. I like it that way.  But I felt it was time for something bigger. 

I've toyed with  the idea of this run for about a year.

I did not wake up one morning and decide to lace up my sneaks and pretend I could be like Dean.

But.  now.  I.  feel.  ready. [And my body will follow suit by May 7th] ;)

It's what I can offer today.  It's what I can do to raise awareness.

So I'm freaking doing it.

The marathon runner/endurance athlete eats, breathes, sweats and dreams about his goal - the ultimate finish line - dedicating himself to years of rigorous training in a quest to stand atop the podium, win an age group placement or the sheer joy of crossing the finish line.

It is passion, patience and sheer ambition that leads the endurance athlete through the challenges and obstacles on the path to victory.

I have my own finish line.  Maybe not one that others will ever understand.  And it may never include any significant medals that were won. 

And
That's
Totally
Okay.

My list of goals may be short one, but it's important all the same. I've spent years working toward my own aspirations, fully aware that most good things don't just happen to people, they evolve after a long term commitment to hard work.

Some may question my goals. . . .  Surely, there are other more important goals I could currently be working on. 

My replies

I am

and

to each their own.
My dedication to my family, my career and local volunteer efforts are all a part of my [mostly, very personal] plan to become a better person. I have filled my life with worthwhile interests and I firmly believe they will lead me to personal growth, a sense of fulfillment and compassion for others.
Every day I strive to live with passion [I may need to work on a little less passion or maybe the right word is "emotion"] but I do not want life to pass me by as I go through the motions.

So.  my.  friends.  this.  is.  why.

Emz



* To those of you who have asked about donating . . . . a big freaking huge, "thank you".  I hope to have the location [of the run] picked by early March as well as the link I will be using to accept donations.

Thank you.
Thank you.
T h a n k   y o u !

73 comments:

RunningLaur said...

You're going to freaking rock this.
Just like everything else.
That is all.

bobbi said...

THIS is why we flock to you - we read every day - we comment like mad - we beg for shirts.

Not because you are an awesome runner (even though you SO ARE).

But because you are an awesome PERSON.

YFGT

ajh said...

Good luck. I have no doubt you can do it.

Evolving Through Running said...

I feel sorry for the treadmill. You are going to shine. At what point in the 24-hours do we get a double-bird?

Katie said...

hey, why not? that's what i say. kill it, woman.

Emz said...

ETR. You. Say. Your. Wish. Is. My. Command.

Matty O said...

Ummmmm, so you WILL have a backup treadmill on hand right? That way there is absolutely NO CHANCE of mechanical failure right?

Who honestly asked why? Seriously, did you even waste your breath... (who am I talking to... energy typing) to respond to them?

People never cease to amaze me with their lack of intelligence. Obviously its something important to you, that is "why" enough!

Sarah said...

What a great cause to run for!

Marlene said...

This is going to be EPIC!

chloƫ. said...

I'm just hoping there's a live webcast for your run too, so we can all partake in your awesomeness.

Jess @ Blonde Ponytail said...

I have absolutely no doubt that you will knock this out of the park! Running for a cause like the fight against domestic abuse will totally help push you through...in the event that you tire--but wait, do you even get tired?!

Melissa Cunningham said...

oh,sister EMZ!
agreeing with everyone else.
i think its aweosme what you are doing. this is YOUR decesion,YOUR life,and no one elses.you are doing it for a good cause,no one has to ever understand the why or hows,but YFGT!
and i know me and about 450+ followers are behind you all the way,cheering from the virtual sidelines!!!!!
we love you!!

ShutUpandRun said...

When asked why, say why not.

When asked why me, say why not me.

You are doing a great thing for the spirit of who you are and for a wonderful cause.

Jason said...

You are doing a great thing regardless of what others think. You do these things for you and what your goals are. You can do this and as we discussed it is done 1 hour at a time.

You
Got
This

C2Iowa said...

As I read your first post about this event; a quote from one of my prior posts came to mind. I do believe that it applies to you and many of your posts.

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

We all know that you will complete this task - but - it is really about something deeper.

Tom said...

You are amazing. By the way, Little Bird by Annie Lenox is one of my favorite songs on my MP3 to run to.

misszippy said...

Because you can and because it has meaning. Awesomeness!

Kristin @NyceLife said...

^^^^^^ditto x17, you are awesomeness incarnate!

Christi said...

That is a great explanation and you are awesome!

Georgia Snail said...

"WHY would you run....?" Those questions always seem to come from folks who are too afraid to do it themselves....

...but I love their witty, canned reply, "I would only run if I were being chased by the police"

Laurie said...

Awesome. Plain and simple, just awesome.

Unknown said...

You really are my hero. We all know you can do this. :) What a great quote from that fortune cookie. I love that Annie Lennox song, and I am not ashamed to admit it.

Rose @ Eat, Drink, and Be Meiri said...

You are AWESOME.

It's nice to know someone else out there in the blogosphere is crazy enough to do a 24 hour run.

A Prelude To... said...

...and that is why I think you are an incredibly awesome woman!!

WELL SAID!

Anonymous said...

uzagonnadoit! fa sho!
did you really get that in a fortune cookie? that would be saweeeeet!

Emz said...

You guys rock

Let me just explain......I loved that they asked me why. Didn't upset me in the slightest.

Any
Chance
I
Can
Get
To
Explain
My
Weirdness ......

I'm all freaking over it! ;)

TutuRunner-yes!! I got it at the RnR AZ expo. [pf chang's booth].

I. Love. It.

Patrick Mahoney said...

I'm backin' this.

Michelle said...

EMZ - it's already all been said in all the other comments. Just needed to add that I truly love this post! So well said! Can't wait for this epic event!

Emz said...

MO - yes. will have a "spare"

Chloe - webcast. fo' sho'

Matty O said...

Now if they both crap out on you... you have to start doing laps around the facility :)

Emz said...

MO

now.
that.
sounds.
freaking.
horrible.

running in circles outside? who does that?! ;)

Caroline said...

Webcast I am there.
Donation I am there.

I know you can do this. I got a $20 bet on you with a morron at my gym you says "it is impossible" This morning I even showed him the picture you sent me in the Christmas card, you know THE picture so he can see you are a badass....I will get to run with that Dean guy on Saturday!! in the rain but who cares!!!

adena said...

Sign me up for donation and cheering support from the North. I LOVE LOVE LOVE that quote, my other arm is feeling a bit nekkid sans tattoo.. hmmmm

Emz said...

Caroline. you. rock.

Go ahead and bet $200.

I've. freaking. got. this.

Adrienne said...

Awesome post. It's easy for people (including myself) to focus on what we "can't" do but we should all try to focus more on what we "can" do and imagine how the world can change. Good for you.

ihaverun said...

You are my hero. I can't wait to follow you on this journey!

racing dawn said...

I can literally FEEL the energy...

we need to find a new word because awesome and amazing just doesn't cover it...

Jen said...

How are you so awesome? I love your passion and your goodness. I will be one of those donating and cheering you on. I wish I could be there in person. Will you have an extra treadmill next to you for company? You are my idol. And when are you having more shirts made. I feel bad that I've missed out being cool.

Shellyrm ~ just a country runner said...

It's wonderful when our abilities align with our desires and we do amazing things.
Oh, for you that seems to be your everyday life. That's what keeps us coming back!

Emz said...

SSINAG - new ink coming soon?!

Jen - shirts coming sooooon!

XLMIC said...

It can be done, and YOU can do it. What a great reason to run for 24-hours on a treadmill, too!

You are huge, Emz. Huge.

Do keep us posted regarding the donation site, please :)

Caroline said...

Emz said:
OH NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You have a "DUKE" banner on your sidebar?!?!?!?!

YEP jsut for March..just so you know who is THE team.

I could make an exception and wear a RUN EMZ shirt instead of my Duke ones for that month...Can I be in the running for one of those..I'll wear it at my gym for that idiot non believer

Emz said...

You. Freaking. Bet. Cha!
I'll hopefully have them sooooooon!!

Aron said...

you are insane and amazing all at the same time :) love it!! I CANNOT imagine running for that long on a TM... I can't even last a mile :-/ you are going to kill it, no doubt!

Kelly Leigh said...

haha I like ETR's comment about feeling sorry for the treadmill. I don't think a treadmill will ever take such a beating. Also I like that this post (like so many of your posts) is about more than just running...

Esp LOVE this....

most good things don't just happen to people, they evolve after a long term commitment to hard work.

Kevin and Kim Partridge said...

Why are you doing this (to me)?!?! May 7th?! Of all the days that you could possibly pick, you chose the ONE DAY that I am going to be hiking the Grand Canyon and have secured all of my reservations and mom. THE ONE DAY!!! How can you expect me to be a supportive friend when you are only thinking of yourself and others? And I was so looking forward to being on your pit crew/ medical team/ cheering section/ sleeping section. I am not happy. But I'll get over it.

monicac2 said...

I mother freaking love this:

Some may question my goals. . . . Surely, there are other more important goals I could currently be working on.

My replies:

I am

~~~~~~~~ You tell 'em!! ~~~~~~~~~~~

Anonymous said...

you go girl...and best of luck!

Anonymous said...

You bring up very good points about the beans. I didn't think about that whooops

And tofu?!
I.
Don't.
Think
So.

I just can't!

So will there be an EMZlive.com feed for your treadie challenge? If IronmanLive is such a huge hit, surely EMZLive.com will take off! Much like those EMZ tattoos, t-shirts and beer holders. You can get Pita to commentate :)

Emz said...

MelBird. The. Pita. And. Commentating.

One
Freaking
Quiet
Webcast.

Cynthia said...

You are so amazing and an inspiration!

Unknown said...

I think it's amazing what you are doing! :)

Nelly said...

Honestly, I think its crazy that you're doing a 24 hour treadmill run. I can't last more than about an hour on the dreadmill before I go crazy! I'm assuming that you can take breaks along the way right? But you are badass EMZ, and you can do anything you want =) I did read about Dean Karnazes and his 24 hour treadmill run, I think he ran like 5 marathons or something insane!

It sounds like it is for a good cause, which is great.

And having a live webcast online would be cool!

Will Cooper said...

rock it! I'll be interested to hear how the whole thing works...running that long on a treadmill. Good luck on this venture and I'm sure you will do well.

Jim ... 50after40 said...

Great job - can't wait!

Happy Feet 26.2 said...

I ran for Team in Training 4 times and that was the header of my fundraising letter

....because I can

Love it! Keep inspiring, keep giving!

DRog said...

Im with racingdawn

can totally feel the energy!!!
I suspect this will be way more intense and meaningful just b/c of the cause you are working toward?

you shouldd def do shirts to raise money? based on the recent demand!

D

Jill said...

Before I even read your answers as to why, I thought to myself, "Because she can, that's why." You and me think a lot a like :).

Unknown said...

You are very inspirational..... I wish you much success when attacking your goals!!

24 hours on a dreadmill.... you're gonna need some bloody hallucinogens!!!

:D

One Crazy Penguin said...

Why? Because....

YOU'VE. FREAKING. GOT. THIS.

That is all :)

Katie said...

I LOVE that quote and I am totally thinking of it tomorrow, I'll need it!!!

Chris K said...

Oh Man, this post is too good and too classy to make a snarky comment. Darn it.

Two years ago, I led a group of coworkers to volunteer for a day at a similar shelter....this one was for abused kids. Every two weeks a portion of my paycheck goes there, and my company matches 100%.

Nice job EMZ. You are not bad for a Wildcat.

AM! said...

hi;)
right.the.frickin' on!!!

wow;)

and can't say much more. that's simply the bomb...

Barbie said...

I would love to donate too. YOU are an AMAZING woman

Silly Girl Running said...

You will rock that run! Love the quote! :)

Please post the donation details/link when you've got it. :)

Hannah said...

I love you. And I love Annie Lennox. And I am so proud of you for what you are accomplishing. So very proud!

Chris K said...

Inspiration for your run:

Fight on and on ye Aztec men
Sons of Montezuma
We will win again
Keep your spirits high
Never bow a knee
We will fight till victory

Fight on and on ye Aztec men
Proudly raise your banners high
For it's the Red and Black
Hail to our team
San Diego Aztecs fight!

KovasP said...

The coolest thing about a treadmill is that there literally is no finish line!

Arica said...

I.
knew.
there.
was.
a.
reason.
I.
read.
YOUR.
blog...
to be inspired!!!
I.am.

Running my first half in less than a month. I need to wear one of your cool shirts to be reminded that I do indeed
"freaking. have. this."
I will send you $$, tell me what to do :)

Big Daddy Diesel said...

You are such a legend to me

Heather said...

You're amazing! and what a great reason to run and raise money!!

Unknown said...

You are an inspiration! I am in awe! Keep going girl! You've freakin' got this! Thank you for sharing this backstory.

Liz said...

I've been catching up on all your posts (I'm a total slacker lately) and I just have to say...

YOU ARE FREAKING AMAZING! You're an inspiration and remind me that with the right training and really hard work, I can go beyond what i perceive to be my limits.

I can't wait to hear more about this!